China Manufacturing Index Little Changed in March

Chinese manufacturing gauges pointed to weakness in the world’s second-biggest economy that could prompt the Communist Party leadership to roll out additional support measures.

A Purchasing Managers’ Index fell to 48 in March, the lowest reading since July, from 48.5 in February, HSBC Holdings Plc and Markit Economics said today. A separate PMI from the government, with a larger sample size, was at 50.3 from 50.2 the previous month.